Callusing the mind

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/09/2020 (1868 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Fall is in the air. It’s September after all, so that’s kind of expected around these parts.

Take this as a sign you can just as easily start changing your life today as you can in January. Change is a matter of choice, not calendar.

I have one simple kickstart I use to build momentum each month. The first of every month I put myself through a challenge. Usually it’s a 24- 36-hour fast. During each month’s challenge I learn something and leave the experience stronger than before.

When you combine a challenge like fasting or a tough workout, you not only build a “callused mind” that helps you withstand stress and hardship, in the words of David Goggins, but you also get a quick win that leads to more wins, as I’ll explain here in a second.

What mini-challenge can you add this month? Here are some ways to approach it.

The Only Thing That Remains the Same…

“The only thing that never changes is that everything changes.”

There’s been a lot of change forced upon us in 2020, no question. But part of continuing to achieve success for years, decades, and a lifetime is to accept change is inevitable.

And, as you know, what got you here won’t get you there. Let’s narrow our focus to weight loss. Do you seem to stall out after the losing the first 10 pounds? The same effort probably won’t get the next 10 off.

If you find yourself always stopping programs early or going through ebbs and flows of motivation, odds are this is habitually ingrained.

After losing 10 pounds, you may not be as uncomfortable as when you started and the initial drive wanes. Then workouts start getting skipped and you become complacent with your diet.

Guess what happens then? The 10 pounds comes back. It’s that never-ending cycle so many get stuck in.

One way to break this cycle is to follow through on commitments, no matter how big or small. It’s as simple as making your bed every morning. Just like doing a monthly fast is a slightly bigger win that builds trust in your ability to follow through.

How we do one thing is how we do everything. All things in your life are connected and they’re a result of the personal standards you’ve set for yourself. You only have one life and this is not a trial run. The price of regret is much higher than the price of effort. So make a commitment of a challenge this month and get it done. You’ll find it snowballs.

How To Develop a “Callused Mind”

I came across this concept after reading David Goggins’ Can’t Hurt Me.

You know how your palms develop callouses in the gym? Your mind works the same way. The more challenge, the more it adapts and gets stronger.

Now, you don’t have to go extremes and adopt the training rituals of a Navy SEAL, but there’s merit in tough mental and physical challenges that then translate to your day-to-day commitments.

When you have a callused mind, you stay committed to completing your mission no matter what life throws in your way.

Kids kept you up last night? That sucks. But you committed to do a workout today, and you’ve made a promise to yourself and your coach, so you’re going to keep a promise. That’s it. It doesn’t come easy. But success is simple once you accept how hard it is.

Water Your Mind With Growth

Building resiliency and changing your mindset needs to be one of the first things you work on. You could be given the best diet and exercise plan in the world, but if it’s planted in a mindset incapable of belief, the likelihood of success is slim to none.

My clients who get these massive successes are not miraculously waking up with a new body. They focus on the process. They focus on showing up to train, even on days where they’d have a valid excuse not to. They focus on sticking to the schedule and “not quitting” even when the going gets tough or the scale indicates a bad week.

Then there are others who might get some initial loss, go from really uncomfortable to slightly less uncomfortable, and that’s enough reason to stop. But if you’re slightly less uncomfortable and stop doing the things that got you there? You’re on the fast-track to being really uncomfortable again. The weight will come back.

One client recently did some inner work to discover some long-held beliefs he had around working out and looking a certain way. They were unknowingly sabotaging him because his childhood story said he wasn’t deserving of being the fittest, healthiest version possible.

One way to truly see how your mind is helping or hindering you is to sit down for a few minutes each day and just write down whatever it is you’re thinking.

Full credit to Brian Grasso for turning me onto this simple — yet effective — strategy. Grasso suggests, nine times out of 10, when you do this journaling exercise a few times a day for at least a week or two, you’re going to see some patterns.

“I feel tired. Lethargic. I have to go to the gym in a couple hours, but I don’t feel like it. I don’t want to go. I can’t eat a good lunch. I’m too busy. I’m not good enough.”

Those are the repeat thoughts you may be having over and over again all day long, and you’re not even aware you’re having them.

That’s the stuff that needs to be cut loose in order to be successful. You have to shift your thoughts — and truly start to enjoy the process of getting in shape, as without some level of enjoyment in the journey, the destination will never be within reach.

Remember those past diets that helped you lose weight fast? They were built on an unrealistic level of willpower.

You hated every minute of it, which is why you fell off and rebounded back to your starting weight.

It’s time… to take one big action, every day, that moves you closer to the body and health you desire.

It’s time… to take 100 per cent responsibility for everything in your life. No more excuses or blame games. Life isn’t always fair, but how you respond is up to you.

It’s time… to leave the past in the past.

It’s time.. to focus on making better nutrition choices, not just on Monday, but Fridays and Saturdays, too.

It’s time… to break a sweat every day. Move more. Sitting is doing you no favours.

It’s time. Don’t wait for 2021 to change your life.

Mitch Calvert is a Winnipeg-based fitness coach for men and women like his former self. Heavy set in his 20s, he lost 60 pounds and now helps clients find their spark and lose the weight for life. Need help getting back into the swing of things? Grab a free diet guide at mitchcalvert.com or email him directly at mitch@mitchcalvert.com if interested in his next Drop 2 Sizes case study coaching program.